Custard apples (custard apples) grown around Ba Den Mountain have long been a famous specialty of Tay Ninh. To bring this fruit to the top of the five-fruit tray is a painstaking process of farmers in this sunny land.
On spring days, standing on the “roof of the South” and looking down, around the foot of the vast mountain are green custard apple gardens. The square garden plots are regular and straight, the trees are neatly trimmed, looking like ornamental flower gardens. When approaching, you can see custard apples in the bushes of leaves, which are in the harvest season.
For many years, the land around the foot of Ba Den Mountain has been considered the “capital” of custard apples in Tay Ninh. The characteristics of the climate and soil of this land have made the difference for Ba Den custard apples with large, chewy, sweet fruits, rich flavor that no other custard apples anywhere can compare to.
Green custard apple gardens at the foot of Ba Den mountain (Tay Ninh).
This year, the weather was favorable, the custard apple crop of households in Tan Hung commune, Tan Chau district was a bumper crop and sold at high prices in the market. During Tet, visiting the gardens here, we easily saw the image of farmers harvesting fruit and laughing happily.
The harvested custard apples are quickly sorted, processed, packed and purchased by Minh Trung Agricultural Service Cooperative (Tan Hung Commune). Garden owners are assured of output and prices, no longer afraid of being forced down by traders like many years ago.
Mr. Le Quang Phu, one of the long-time growers of custard apples in Tan Trung B hamlet, Tan Hung commune, said: “Since my family joined the cooperative, engineers have come to the garden to help take care of the plants, and the selling price has been more stable than before. This year's Tet, the weather is favorable, the gardens here are full of fruit, with beautiful colors, my family and I are very excited.”
Mr. Ha Nam Ninh's custard apple garden is considered the most beautiful in this area. The garden is 3 hectares wide, lush green, and heavy with fruit on the branches; the fruits are all large and uniform in size, with an average yield of about 13 tons/ha.
The secret of this old farmer is to use good fertilizers on the market, twice or three times more than other gardens. In addition, he only uses organic fertilizers and pesticides; uses foam and nylon to cover the fruit from an early age, so the custard apples always have bright, eye-catching colors.
Tay Ninh people harvest custard apples in joy of good harvest and good price.
Talking about joining Minh Trung Agricultural Service Cooperative, Mr. Ninh said: “The collective is always stronger than the individual. Being able to join the cooperative is a source of excitement for the people. Thanks to that, we are stable in all aspects from farming techniques to output, maintaining security and order.”
The person who contributed to the success of the farmers growing custard apples around the foot of Ba Den Mountain is Mr. Le Minh Trung - Chairman of the Board of Directors of Minh Trung Agricultural Service Cooperative. His family has a custard apple garden and has been the owner of a custard apple warehouse at Thu Duc agricultural wholesale market, Ho Chi Minh City for many years. Witnessing the ups and downs of the province's specialty fruit, Mr. Trung cherished the desire to promote the Tay Ninh custard apple brand in the domestic and foreign markets.
In 2022, Mr. Trung established a cooperative, developing custard apple growing techniques using organic and biological fertilizers. After success, the cooperative transferred new farming techniques to its members. After just over two years of establishment, Minh Trung Agricultural Service Cooperative has attracted 127 members with an area of up to 600 hectares, stretching from Tan Chau district to Duong Minh Chau and Tay Ninh city.
Learning from the previous generation's experience in reviving custard apple trees and relying on his experience in fruit business, Mr. Trung always buys custard apples from members at a price 3,000-5,000 VND/kg higher than the market price.
Tay Ninh custard apples are large, uniform in size and have beautiful colors.
Mr. Trung shared that in the past, during the traditional farming process, custard apples were not carefully fertilized, did not ensure safety in terms of pesticide residues and insect prevention, specifically, they were susceptible to maggots in the fruit. Therefore, many consumers were afraid that they would not be able to use this specialty when they bought it. In recent years, the cooperative has actively encouraged and promoted farmers to use organic and biological fertilizers and pesticides, and fruit covers to prevent insects and maggots before harvest.
Since then, the position of custard apple has gradually been restored to a better position in the hearts of consumers. During this Tet season, orders from consumers in provinces and cities have increased significantly.
“We are satisfied with this result. However, we have higher aspirations in the future, to find ways to bring this specialty beyond Vietnam’s borders,” said Mr. Trung.
During the spring and Tet holidays, farmers around the foot of Ba Mountain cannot help but feel proud because their fruits are at the top of the five-fruit trays of Vietnamese families. It is also a message of prayer for a new year of warmth, prosperity, peace and happiness.
Source: https://danviet.vn/duoi-chan-noc-nha-nam-bo-co-nhung-vuon-mang-cau-ta-vuon-dep-nhat-la-cua-ong-nong-dan-ten-la-ha-nam-ninh-20250202221706986.htm
Comment (0)